Holley Shiftwell, Past, Present, and Future
by DancingKitKat
Summary: When Holley Shiftwell wakes up in a hospital with no memory, she has no choice but to start her life over again. After spending a year trying to support herself, she receives a mysterious visitor that insists he knows her past - and that she's really a CAR? What happens to Holley when she returns to her old life in the world of cars? Can she ever fit back into her old life?
1. Chapter 1

Holley Shiftwell nodded at the man's order. "Okay, sir, that will be three sixteen," she told him in her thick British accent, although her accent had faded a little bit in the last year. He dug around in his coat pocket for a moment, then handed the cash over. She surveyed it for a moment. Yes, that was the correct change. Gosh, American money was _soooo_ confusing.

"Your name?" Holley asked.

"Max," the young man replied. Holley nodded and grabbed a tall cup. She wrote '_Max_' on it and checked off '_tall_'. She quickly prepared his Carmel Mocha and passed it over, smiling at him as she wished him a good day. She rubbed her neck and looked at her watch.

"Oh, hey, Linda? I have to go. I'm supposed to babysit the Jacksons in twenty minutes," Holley called, untying her green apron and hanging it up. She grabbed her purse and dashed out to her car.

One year ago, Holley Shiftwell had woken up in a hospital, IVs beeping in her ears and not remembering anything. Well, she still remembered her name and a mini van heading straight towards her, the panicked struggling to avoid hitting her. A few minutes later, a cute, young doctor walked in and told her that she had been hit by a car. She remembered nothing, and no one seemed to recognize her. She had no clue to who she was, except that she came from Britain, hence her heavy British accent. She was forced to start her life over and work for her living.

Holley had a job at Starbucks, babysat a lot of kids that lived in the same crappy apartment building as her, and worked as a life guard at the YMCA pool. Holley was barely able to support herself, but somehow she was able to keep her apartment and feed herself. She dearly wanted to go to college, but she didn't have the money. She was hoping that maybe she could fall in love and get married, and maybe her husband could help her out, but sadly, she didn't have any time to date. Heck, Holley barely had time to eat and sleep. For her, a luxury weekend was a day in the park sitting on a bench and reading a good book.

Holley just barely reached the Jackson's apartment in time. She had to run up all the stairs (their apartment building's elevator had broke a week before) and down the hallway, just barely missing an old lady. "Sorry, ma'am!" she squeaked as she helped steady the old lady. The lady glared at her before walking away. Holley facepalmed, then knocked on the Jackson's door.

"Holley!" a little voice squealed. The door burst open and five year old Leah Jackson was grinning up at her. "Hi, Holley!"

"Hi, Leah," Holley greeted the young girl. The other three hyper Jackson kids ran up as she stepped into the apartment. There was the two eight year old twins, Chase and Rachel, and four year old Sam. They were all hyper and friendly - a real handfull to take care of, but Holley still adored them. They were very sweet when they could manage to calm down, though. Once, Sam had cut his knee, and all three of the other Jackson children had helped Holley patch him up and entertain him for the entire afternoon.

"Hello, Holley. How are you?" Mrs. Jackson asked as she walked out of the clutter-filled living room. She gave Holley a tired smile, which Holley returned.

"Good, you?" she replied.

"I'm doing okay, but I hope I can get the job today. It would really give our family a boost," Mrs. Jackson said as she buttoned up her good coat.

"Good luck with the job interview, I'm sure you'll do great," Holley encouraged her.

"Thanks, Holley. I'll be back at eight. The kids have already had an early dinner, and you know their bedtimes. Thanks again, Holley," Mrs. Jackson said as she reached down to hug her kids before disappearing out the door. Holley turned to face four grinning children.

"So, what do you want to do?"

...

Holley bid her farewells to Mrs. Jackson as she walked out the door, pocketing the money she had just received and sighing a weary sigh. The Jackson kids always tired her out, and Holley couldn't wait to just collapse in bed. She had to get up early anyways to start her shift at Starbucks the next morning, too.

Holley was shaken out of her tired state as she bumped into someone. "Oh! I'm so sorry!" she gasped, looking at the man, who was regaining his balance. He was tall and good looking, maybe ten years older than her. He wore a silvery-blue suit, deep aqua eyes, and his hair was black, as was his mustache. He looked like James Bond or someone like that. Holley frowned - he seemed familiar.

"It's no problem, miss," he assured her. He had a British accent, just like hers... Her frown deepened as she nodded and skirted around him, her face burning.

"Miss? Could you come with me for just a moment?"

Holley turned around. The man was looking right at her, his face emotionless. This was getting creepy... "Um, sure. Why?" she asked as she walked towards him. She followed him as he walked towards the stairs, then lead her up to the roof, ignoring her questions. He opened the door that lead o the roof. Her instincts told her '_run!_', but she ignored them as she walked onto the roof.

Holley turned to him as he shut the door. "A Volkswagen Karmann Ghia has no radiator," he said. Okay, that was random...

Something clicked in the back of Holley's head. "That's because it's air-cooled," she replied slowly. How had she known that? The man sighed in relief and walked over to her, and then - he hugged her?!

"Oh, Miss Shiftwell, where have you been the past year? What happened? Everyone at C.H.R.O.M.E. has been so worried, and Mater has been going insane, Are you okay?" the man asked her. Holley's mouth was hanging open as she gently pushed the now-confused man off her.

"Um, who on _earth_ are you?" she questioned, staring at him in disbelief.

"Miss Shiftwell, it's me, Finn," the man - Finn - told her, looking slightly put-out.

"Finn..." Holley motioned for him to go on.

"Finn McMissile!" Finn said, now looking confused.

"Sorry, sir, but am I supposed to know you?" Holley asked, feeling as confused as him. What, was he someone from her past? What if he was part of her family?

"Miss - Holley!" Finn exclaimed, walking close to her. She backed up a bit. "Holley, don't you remember me?"

Holley shook her head slowly. "Am I supposed to?"

"I was your spy partner for a year, so I would guess yes. Holley what happened? Are you okay?" he asked, repeating his question from earlier.

"Spy partner? Spy partner? What are you talking about?" Holley exclaimed. "Sir, I'm no spy!"

Finn looked very distressed. "Holley, you don't remember me?"

"No."

"How about Mater? C.H.R.O.M.E.? Your family?"

"No, no I don't. Look, who are you?"

"I'm your spy partner and friend, Finn McMissile."

"I'm a spy?"

"Yes, one of the best C.H.R.O.M.E. has to offer."

"What does C.H.R.O.M.E. stand for?"

"Command Headquarters for Recon Operations and Motorized Espionage."

"Motorized Espionage? What does _that_ mean?"

"Holley, what do you remember from our world?"

"What?"

"What do you remember from our world? The world of cars?" Finn asked her, now looking slightly panicked.

"The world of cars? What on earth are you talking about?!" Holley exclaimed, brushing her curly dark brown hair away from her vivid emerald green eyes.

"Our home! Holley, don't you remember who you are?"

"No! I woke up a year ago in a hospital after being hit by a car!" Holley was starting to get even more stressed now, not to mention very freaked out.

"Oh, this is bad..." Finn trailed off, thrusting his hand through his hair, messing it up. "Very, very bad..."

"Sir! What on earth are you talking about?!" Holley exclaimed. This man was talking nonsense. Was he drunk? Finn looked at her in slight surprise, but regained his composure.

"Don't you know who you are?"

"NO!"

"You don't remember any of your life as your original form - a car?"

"No - wait, _WHAT?!_"


	2. Chapter 2

**MonkeyLover422**: _LOL, thanks for your comment! It made me smile. :)_

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**Big Fan of Lightning McQueen95**: _Glad you liked this. :) _

**MaterLisa:** _Thank you for your review! I know Holley didn't sound very British in that last chapter, but she's been living in a dingy American apartment building for a year, and that would change just about anyone's language, right? I guess __I should have made that a bit clearer, but I'll just delete that part and use your words. Thanks for the advice! :)_

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...

Holley stared up at Finn with a concerned look on her face. "Sir, are you feeling alright?"

"Yes, Holley, I am feeling fine. Look, your original form is a car, not a human. You're a spy for C.H.R.O.M.E. We first met on a mission to uncover a plot when a group of Lemons tried to make a bad name for alternative fuel by creating then sabotaging a race. Those thugs were caught, but then became the first cars to ever escape C.H.R.O.M.E. prison a year later. You and I were assigned to track them down and bring them back to prison. We found at their old headquarters," Finn started to explain. His eyes became slightly glazed as he looked down at Holley, as if he was remembering something.

**Flashback:**

"Miss Shiftwell, you stay over here. I'll sneak back behind them, then we'll attack, okay?" Finn hurriedly whispered to Holley. His partner dipped her hood in a quick nod, then pulled back into the shadows a bit more. Finn rolled away silently, dodging behind everything he could. He kept a close eye on Axelrod, Zündapp, Grem, Acer, and another thug - a red Hugo - that he didn't know the name of. They were all crowding around a weapon that looked like the 'camera' from the World Grand Prix, which worried Finn. Finally, he was behind them. He caught Holley's gaze from the other side of the room and nodded. She shifted her wheel a bit and her electro shock taser popped out, ready for action. Over the past year, Finn had come to really love that thing.

Finn muttered,"Battle guns, at the ready." His guns snapped out of his side. He wouldn't actually shoot any of the Lemons, unless, of course, it was absolutely necessary, but hopefully the guns just would scare the Lemons into submitting to his orders. That probably wouldn't happen, but hey, even a spy could dream.

Holley blasted out of her hiding spot and tasered a surprised Grem. He yelled before he went unconscious. Holley aimed her tasers at Axelrod, but a gun protruded from his side and he shot at her. The bullet would have blasted into her windshield if Holley hadn't thrown her tires from underneath her, causing her to slam to the ground. Ow. That probably hadn't felt too good on her underside, Finn thought. She picked herself back quickly and prepared to jump back into the battle that was beginning.

Finn shot a bullet at Acer's side, hoping to blow off his guns, but sadly, Acer moved to the side. He aimed and sent a bullet spiraling back at the British spy, bu Finn easily dodged it. He revved his engine and zipped towards the ugly Pacer and crashed into his side, disabling Acer's weapon. Acer growled and tried to smash back into Finn, but he was no match for his enemy. Finn slammed into him again, and Acer went unconscious.

A bullet zipped by Finn's hood and came dangerously close to blowing off his left review mirror. Finn whipped around to face an enraged looking Zündapp. The two cars raced at each other, and Finn swerved to the side at the last moment. Zündapp went spinning into a pile of wooden crates, yelling something probably not very nice in German. Finn prepared his grappling hooks and aimed them for another high pile of boxes, hoping to pull them down on the evil German mastermind and bury him, but a crash and a pained female cry from behind him tore his attention away from his plan. He turned around as quickly as he could and looked at Holley, how had been rammed into by Axelrod and knocked into a pile of boxes like Zündapp had. She was partly buried under the junk, and struggling to free herself. The Hugo laughed. "Can I try the weapon out on her now, boss?" he asked eagerly, pulling up behind the new weapon.

Axelrod looked at the struggling Jaguar XJR-15, who was shooting nervous glances at the weapon pointing at her every few seconds as she tried to free herself from under the tower of boxes. An evil smirk crept onto Axelrod's face. "Why not see if it works or not?" he snickered.

The Hugo laughed and Finn cried,"no!" He aimed his guns and prepared to shoot the Hugo, but he had already pulled the lever to the weapon.

A loud whining sound filled the room, and a bright blue beam of light escaped from the front of it. It hit Holley, who cried out in fear and froze, then - she disappeared entirely. The crates that had been piled upon her tumbled onto the boxes below them, and Finn gasped in horror, panic rushing through his body and turning his frame ice-cold. He gritted his teeth and shot the laughing Hugo, who fell on his side, his expression unknowing with a ghost of his last grin on his face. Finn raced at Axelrod and ran into him and Axelrod started to fight back.

"What did you do to her?!" Finn yelled as he tried to push Axelrod into a wall.

"You'll never know, now will you?" Axelrod shouted back gleefully, overjoyed to see the pain he had put his enemy in.

"I'll kill you if you don't confess!" Finn roared, giving an extra hard push. The villain flew back into the wall, and Finn crashed into him. He was pleased to hear a strangled yelp come from Axelrod, but Axelrod wouldn't tell him. The brawl continued, and it became serious for Finn when Zündapp joined. Finn was just barely able to escape using his grappling hooks and a couple of other nifty spy tricks. He went into submarine form and sent a message to London. An hour later, a young but experienced spy by the name of Abby Turnpike came back to the oil derricks to serve as his backup. Together, they defeated Axelrod and Zündapp.

They brought the four living Lemons back to C.H.R.O.M.E., and after a painful interrogation for the villains, Grem confessed that Holley had not been brutally murdered like Finn had feared. The Gremlin insisted that she had actually been transported to a parallel universe, although it was unknown if she was still alive or not. After a year full of experiments, research, and late, late nights, Finn found all the information he needed to safely go and attempt to rescue his partner.

**End of flashback.**

Holley stared at Finn as he finished his story, now feeling very concerned for his sanity."Ah, sir, that's very exciting and all, but it's simply not possible. And anyways, how would we get back to that world of yours?" Holley asked, backing away from him slightly. Finn sighed and motioned to his watch.

"When I push the 'clock' on this button, we both will be transported back home. Holley, trust me. You belong there, not here," Finn insisted. Holley stared at him doubtfully.

"Well, explain why I lost my memories when I was transported here and you didn't," Holley argued, looking around for a way to get around Finn and to the exit before he went completely nuts and pushed her off the roof or something.

"We made some changes to the weapon during a few of our experiments, so that feature must have been removed," Finn replied smoothly. He sure wasn't giving up on his crazy theory.

"Sir, it's just not possible. Now please, I don't mean to be rude, but let me just go home!" Holley's voice rose slightly in annoyance.

"Holley, I _am_ trying to take you home, just please let me!" Finn exclaimed, also looking annoyed. Holley curled her fists into balls as he took another step closer to her. She was getting awfully close to that edge...

"Get away from me!" she yelled. She tried to duck under Finn's arm, but he caught her wrist.

"Holley, please, I'm not lying! Please trust me!" he pleaded. Holley caught at the desperate look in his eyes and she sighed and stop struggling. Maybe if she pretended to go along with his little plan for a moment, she could escape.

"Fine. Do whatever you want to do, just don't hurt me, or you will be sorry," she warned him, straightening up. Finn's shoulders slumped in relief.

"Thank you, Holley. Just hold onto my... thing," he motioned towards his right arm.

"Your arm?" Holley said. Finn nodded.

"Yes, my 'arm'. Hold onto that tightly and don't let go," Finn instructed her. Holley clutched his arm, her lips in a tight frown. This man didn't have a screw loose, he had all of his screws loose. Finn reached for his watch with his left hand and pressed down on the clock. There was a high-pitched whining noise in Holley's ears and she shuddered, then gasped as the world spun, then went utterly black.

...

**Hey guys! OMG, thanks so much for all the reviews! I was so excited to see all of your wonderful comments. Please review again and tell me what you think of this chapter!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Kitty**


	3. Chapter 3

Holley felt herself coming to. "_What happe - oh, right. Some crazy guy named Finn McMissile..._" she thought to herself. "_Why do I feel so.. weird?_"

Holley opened her eyes slowly and blinked a couple of times. the sunlight was bri -"ACK!" she yelped and jumped slightly. She was staring down at a purple hood! What on earth?

She looked around, panicked. She was in a room with nothing in it. The walls were made of stainless steel, and the room was rounded. But the thing that creeped Holly out the most was she couldn't seem to get her head to look down at her feet. She tried to move her arms, and she saw something black swing out from under the purple hood. She explored her senses, and started hyperventilating. She couldn't move normally! She tried to walk over to the wall to look in it's reflection and see what the heck was going on, but she couldn't.

She couldn't walk. It was like she was...

"A car," she whispered. She heard something slid open and shut behind her open and with much difficulty, she turned around to see a silvery-blue Aston Martin with aqua eyes.

Eyes.

The car. Had. EYES.

"Oh my goodness! What is going on?" she yelped, jumping back as she gasped."Oh, my gosh, I'm going senile!"

"No, Holley, you're not insane," the car said in a familiar voice. She stopped trying to move.

"_Finn?_" she asked in shock. If she had still been a human, her shoulders would have drooped and her eyes would have nearly popped out of her head.

"Yes, it's me. How are you feeling?"

"I feel great, thanks. Except for one little thing..."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

"I'M A FREAKING CAR!" she screamed. Finn backed up a few feet. "I am a CAR, what have you done to me? Why am I a CAR? I -"

"Holley!" Finn exclaimed.

"WHAT?"

"Holley, calm down. I know this may seem a little strange - "

"Only a little, huh?"

"- but trust me, you're fine, compared to that form you have been the past year. I mean, those humans could only go, what, seven miles an hour at most? And they used us as machines. Complete cannibalism, I tell you."

"Maybe I wasn't fast before, but at least I was normal. And sane!" Holley cried, not bothering to try and keep from freaking out. "I must be going crazy, I simply can NOT be a car! A car! What is happening to me? I - I - I must be hallucination that I'm a car! Oh, wake up, Holley, wake up, wake up, WAKE UP!"

"Holley!" Finn walked - no, he DROVE - up to Holley and put a tire on her side, trying to calm her down, but receiving the opposite effect.

"OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH OHMYGOSH!"

"Holley!" Finn said with a warning tone in his voice. "Holley, please! Calm down!"

"I WILL NOT CALM DOWN! I'M A -"

"Car! I get it!" Finn exclaimed, starting to get ticked off. He hadn't been prepared for Holley to act like this. The Holley he remembered was level-headed and almost always calm and under control. "You're a car!"

"Actually, that wasn't exactly what I was going to say," she growled, looking up at Finn. He raised half of his windshield.

"And I have a feeling that word wasn't going to be very polite, now was it?"

"Not in the least," she muttered darkly.

"Holley, please, calm down," he started, and when she opened her mouth, he interrupted her. "Or we may have to give you something to make you be calm."

"You would DRUG me? Oh, that's just flat-out wrong! First you pull me into this vile hallucination, then you threaten to DRUG me? How messed up can you get?" Holley exclaimed, starting to get worked up again.

"Holley, please, trust me, when you get all your memory back, you'll understand. You were born this way. This is your true form," Finn insisted.

"Really? And tell me, where do I live? Krypton?" Holley asked sarcastically. "Or Hogwarts? Yes, I bet I live at Hogwarts, don't I?"

Finn chuckled weakly. "No, Holley, you don't live at Krypton. Or Hogwarts. But you truly are a car," Finn tried to explain again.

"Then why can't I even MOVE?"

"Here, just stop thinking about 'walking', and think about driving. Try to roll forward slowly. Don't think of it as a 'step', just a casual roll," Finn instructed her, rolling forwards slowly. Holley bit her lower lip, which was MUCH wider then it should have been, but she gave it a shot. She rolled forwards slowly, and she squeaked in surprise. But she tried again, an she followed Finn slowly, like a baby learning to walk.

She looked around nervously as she calmed down a little. Now that she thought about it, it would be fascinating to learn what it would be like to be a car. Of course, she knew it was all just a hallucination. There was no way she could actually be a car, but as long as she was here, stuck in another world she had made up in her head, she might as well have fun in it. She wondered if she could make herself a pretend boyfriend - or a spy! She had always wanted to be a spy. A spy's life seemed to exciting, unlike her own life.

The two cars rolled out of the room slowly, and Holley found herself in a bustling room full of more cars, and Holley gasped a little. There were cars looking at computers and TV screens, cars comparing notes, cars doing paperwork, and even a couple creating and testing things that looked like guns of some sort.

"Finn! Good to see - Holley!" a car cried as she rushed forwards. Holley shied away a little behind Finn, even though she didn't really trust him, and the car slowed a bit. She was a sleek dark blue Ferrari with brown eyes, and she had an American accent. "Holley, how are you? We've all missed you here. What happened to you? Where did you go?" she asked eagerly. She seemed a bit baffled and disappointed at Holley's shy behavior.

"Sorry, Miss Morgan," Finn said, but the car interrupted.

"Finn, please, just call me Cammie! Seriously, you're too serious!" Cammie joked. Finn smiled a little at her, and Holley noticed a little blush creeping up his cheeks - no, his fenders - when she said his name.

"Well, _Cammie_," Finn continued pointedly, and Cammie grinned when he called her by her preferred name."Holley seems to have lost all her memories when she was transported to another world, so she's a little disorientated right now."

"Awesome! About the being transported to another world. Oh my gosh, that's terrible! About losing all your memories," Cammie sympathized. "I'm sorry, Holley, but you'll remember everything soon!"

"Yes, hopefully she will. Holley, since you don't remember, this is Cameron Morgan, although she prefers to be called Cammie. She's one of our best field agents," Finn introduced Holley. Holley smiled a little at Cammie as she pulled out from behind Finn a little.

"Yeah, so, I'm Cammie the Great! Hey, just wondering... Can you remember a particular tow truck?"

Holley shook her head - well, it was now a hood. "No," she said in a quieter tone than normal. Cammie looked a little panicked.

"Oh, well, that's not good," she said, sounding like she was trying not to do what Holley had been doing earlier and go crazy. "Yeah, well, you have a boyfriend named Mater, and he's been going ballistic about you, and I nearly shoved him into a closest this morning to shut him up."

Finn laughed a little, then sobered down. "Mater is here?"

"Yes, he came as soon as he heard you were going after Holley. He wanted to come with, but you had already gone by the time he got here," Cammie explained.

"Oh... Well, we better go talk to him and explain a couple things," Finn said as he started to continue to roll down the aisle between desks. Cammie fell behind him and drove next to Holley.

"Mater's a nice guy, but a little... Hyper, I guess a good word for it is. He isn't always on top of things, I guess you might say, but he's super sweet and he's a genius in his own way. He solved this mystery about a so-called alternative fuel that no one else could. Gosh, the Allinol thing was such a big pain in the butt. We had agents everywhere trying to find out what those criminals were up to, and we actually lost a fair few, sadly, including one of our best, Leland Turbo," Cammie rambled on, but Holley stiffened at that last sentence.

"People died?"

"Yeah, just a few."

"Is that normal?"

"It just depends on the mission. You've almost died a couple of times."

"Oh. Good to know. thanks for the information. I really needed that," Holley said sarcastically. Cammie smirked.

"You're welcome."

...

Hey guys! SO SORRY ABOUT THE SHORT CHAPTER. I've been super busy at school. I really wish I could say that I'll make up for it tomorrow, but I don't think I'll have time. I have to go work my butt off at dance. -_- I'm not joking - I had to do nearly 70 men's push-ups at my last class (not all at once, thank goodness, but still - not fun!). Anyways, wish me luck that I don't die!

Crap, I probably just jinxed it... -_-

Anyways, please review! I'll try to update with a longer chapter soon, but I want to update Collision and Feel this Moment first. If you haven't read those yet, please check them out! And I know the 'I'M A FREAKING CAR' thing wasn't very Holley-ish, but hey, I think anyone would say that if they had been randomly transformed into a car, right?

Did anyone get my little joke with Cammie? Cammie Morgan... Gallagher Girls... Spies...

Okay, I'll shut up now.

Thanks for reading!

Kitty


	4. Chapter 4

Holley and Cammie exchanged small talk on the way to Cammie's office. Cammie told Holley a bit about the spy agency and a bit about Holley before she had disappeared. She had been a desk agent, but then she had suddenly gotten pulled into the role of field agent in an emergency. She remained at the status of 'emergency field agent' for the World Grand Prix scam, and once that was solved, she asked if she could stay a field agent. Since Finn's partner had died during the World Grand Prix mission (this made Holley's... tank?... twist nervously - she prayed that death wasn't a common occurrence to Finn's partners), there was an opening for that, and so Holley became his partner. Cammie said that she was a talented spy, one of the best in the business. Holley doubted this. She wasn't outrageously smart, or agile, or very stealthy - heck, Mrs. Harrison, the elderly widow who lived down the hall from Holley, was probably stealthier than her.

Cammie also gave Holley a little information about herself and her relationship with Holley; apparently they were friends. Once she had joined Holley and Finn on a dangerous mission, and Holley had saved her life. Holley lifted her eyebrow - well, she didn't have any anymore, so you might say she lifted her eyelid - at this. She couldn't imagine how she could have done such a thing as save somebody else's life. Or how she could have kept her head in a situation like that. Maybe the same way she had stayed calm when she learned she was a car. But Cammie also said that friendships were a dangerous thing in their field of work, according to Finn. "Any relationship is dangerous, really. If you're a spy like us, then your enemies will target your loved ones. This is always hard on us spies, but I think it's often worth it," Cammie said. Holley was sure she caught the Ferrari stealing a wistful glance towards Finn, who was driving a couple of yards in front of the two girls, but she wasn't one hundred per cent sure.

"Then why am I... Uh, dating this Mater guy?" Holley asked curiously.

"Well, it's not like we're forbidden to have relationships or whatever. It's just dangerous. It's your own risk if you chose to date someone, or be friends with someone, especially if they're a normal civilian. Some people totally cut off contact with their parents and siblings to avoid them being put in danger."

"Oh..."

Holley lapsed into silence. Did she do that? Did she stop talking to her family to protect them? Or had she taken the risk of staying in contact with them?

Wait, what? What was she thinking? She didn't have any family here - this was just a hallucination.

But if it was just a hallucination... Then why was she believing every word Cammie said?

"Holley?"

Holley snapped back to attention. "Sorry, Cammie. What did you say?"

"It's fine. A lot to take in, I suppose," Cammie nodded thoughtfully as the two turned a corner into a quieter hallway. Finn was still ahead of them, and he was speeding up a little, like he wanted to get the meeting with Mater over as quickly as possible. "Oh, we're just about to my office... Finn!"

Finn turned around. "Yes, Miss Morgan?"

"FINN..."

"Excuse me, _Cammie_. What is it?"

"_Thank you._ Now, what's the official plan?"

Holley and Cammie pulled up to Finn. Holley glanced between the two cars as they started formatting a plan.

"I'll go in and explain the situation to Mater, and you stay out here."

"That's fine with me."

"If Mater busts out of your office once he hears that Holley's back before I can tell him about everything that's going on, then you're in charge of stopping him before he does anything Mater-like and scaring Holley -"

"Excuse me?" Holley cut in incredulously, but the two other spies ignored her.

"- and explaining the situation to him."

"That I'm not fine with."

"It's unlikely, but you must be - "

"Yeah, yeah, I must be prepared for every situation, blah, blah, blah. Just get in there and tell the poor tow truck Holley's back," Cammie said in a loud, mocking voice. Then she froze. "Dang it..."

The door at the end of the hall swung open, and an excited looking tow truck sped out. "Miss Holley!" he cried in an excited voice. He started to race at the confused Jaguar and she pulled back a little in surprise at his rowdy excitement. "Yur back!"

"Mater, stop!" Finn commanded, quickly parking himself in front of Holley. Mater pulled to a stop, looking confused and a little hurt. For some reason, Holley immediately felt bad and wanted to comfort the tow truck, but she was a little taken back by his loud behavior.

"Wassamatter?" he asked, looking over Finn at Holley, who shrank back a little at his intense stare. "Miss Holley, are you okay?"

Finn cleared his throat, and Mater looked back at him. "Mater, when Holley was hit by the beam of that weapon, she was transported to another world and turned into a 'human', which is a creature with two legs instead of tires, blood instead of oil, and flesh instead of metal on their small frames."

Cammie shot Holley a sympathetic look. Holley wasn't sure exactly how to respond, so she didn't. "She unfortunately lost all her memories, so you'll want to let her adjust and get to know you again before you try to, ah, get back into your old habits with her."

"Ya don't remember who Ah am?" Mater asked Holley in a slightly quieter voice than before.

"No, sorry," she replied shyly. She felt so bad about this...

"Well, shoot. Ah'm Tow Mater," Mater introduced himself. Finn pulled away from in between the two cars slowly, and Mater pulled a bit closer to Holley. She sort of wanted to pull away, but she didn't want to hurt him any more. "Ah run Tow Mater Towing and Salvage back home in Radiator Springs, and we meet on a mission ta save da world."

Mater paused for a second, letting that sink in. "Now do ya remember me?"

Holley smiled and laughed a little. "Um, no, sorry. But you seem like a nice person."

Mater smiled at her, but she could see the disappointment in his eyes. "Ah, well, maybe ya will later."

"Maybe."

The two cars sunk into a slightly awkward silence, and Finn cleared his throat. Everyone looked at him. "So, Holley, what do you want to do now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Where do you want to stay until you regain your memory?"

"Oh!" Mater exclaimed, jumping up a little as an idea struck him. "Holley can stay in Radiator Springs! She'll be safe dere."

"Brilliant idea, Mater," Finn complimented the tow truck, who was grinning happily. "Holley, how do you feel about staying in Radiator Springs with Mater?"

Holley wasn't sure if she wanted to stay in this Radiator Springs (it didn't exactly look like it was home to very, erm... Holley-like people), but then she looked at Mater, who's tow cable was sort of wagging slightly. She couldn't help but smile at that. "I'd love to," she replied.

Mater's grin could be seen from a mile away.

* * *

Holley was wrong about everyone from Radiator Springs being hillbillies. On the flight to Phoenix, Arizona, Mater told her everything there was to tell about the little town and it's residents. Apparently, a famous race car named Lightning McQueen lived there, along with his lawyer fiancee Sally. There was Flo, who had once been a show car and now ran a cafe, her husband, Ramone, who was a talented artist and the town doctor, Sheriff, who was unsurprisingly the sheriff, Sarge, who had been in the military, Fillmore, who made and sold his own organic fuel, Red, the shy firetruck, Lizzie, the (somewhat crazy) elderly car that ran the curios shop, and more. Mater told her all about the history of the town, about himself, and about how they had met. Holley had to admit although he wasn't the most intelligent person she had ever met, he was very sweet and nice.

Holley awoke the next morning, feeling confused. "Where am I?" she thought groggily. Then she looked down and saw a purple hood in front of her. She yelped slightly, then remembered - she was in an insane hallucination where she was a car.

"Miss Holley? Are ya okay?" Mater asked her sleepily, yawning.

"Oh, sorry, did I wake you up?" she asked worriedly.

"No! Well, yes, but it's fine," he assured her.

"Sorry," she repeated, feeling a blush creep up her... whatever replaced her cheeks.

"It's fine," he repeated. "How did ya sleep?"

"Fine, you?"

"Purty good," he said, yawning and stretching a bit. Holley's... axle? Gosh, this was confusing... Her axle felt a little too stiff for comfort, so she mimicked the tow truck in the seat next to her and heard a small cracking pop, similar to the sound she heard whenever she had twisted her back from side-to-side after a long day of standing in front of a cash register and preparing lattes. She wasn't exactly sure how that had happened, and she wasn't sure she wanted to know, but her axle felt better, so she didn't complain.

"How much longer do you reckon until we land?" Holley asked Mater in a hushed voice, as there were other cars still sleeping.

"Ladies and gentlecars, welcome to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The local time is six twenty-six, and the temperature is sixty-seven degrees. For your personal safety and comfort..."

Holley laughed a little as the announcer continued with her announcement. "Guess that answers that," she giggled to Mater. He snickered.

"You're done right bout dat."

Half an hour later, Holley, Mater, and Finn, who was going to stay with Holley for a week before returning to C.H.R.O.M.E., rolled out of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Holley looked around at Phoenix. "All right, Mater, show us the way to Radiator Springs."

* * *

Holley was surprised how far she was able to drive. As a human, she had only been able to walk maybe four miles at a time, and that would take maybe an hour and a half, but now she was able to go four miles in four minutes (she probably could have gone faster, but she didn't feel like getting pulled over by the cops just yet), and she could go... She didn't know how far she could be able to go in one go. She felt like she just keep going and going, but after about forty minutes of driving, Finn had them all pull over to get filled up with gas.

It was the weirdest feeling ever, being filled with gasoline. It felt like she was getting an IV injection - as a human, when you got an IV push or whatever, sometimes you could feel the liquid flowing through your veins. Holley could feel the gasoline flowing from the gas pump and through some sort of pipe, and then it sloshed around in her tank. She cringed - this felt so weird, like how it felt when you drink a large glass of water and start jumping up and down. The pump bell dinged and loosened from her side, and she pushed it away and payed for the gasoline. She waited for Mater and Finn, and then they were off again.

The sun beat down on them, and the metal on Holley's frame absorbed it like a sponge absorbs water. It wasn't unbearably hot, but it wasn't too comfortable, either. She wondered if cars could swim, or if they would just drown because they were so heavy. She decided she would not be experimenting this on her own, and to just take the safe path and Google it.

Finally, a medium sized town appeared on the horizon. "It's growned quite ah bit in da past few years, eva since Lightning done come here," Mater said happily. Holley smiled at his pride in his hometown, then she frowned a bit. What was her hometown? Would she ever find out, or would she be left in the dark about her past forever?

* * *

I AM SO SORRY THAT a) I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN FOREVER, AND b) THAT TOTALLY STUNK.

Just wanna ask... Did anyone fangirl when they read '...Lightning McQueen lived there, along with his lawyer fiancee Sally'? If so, YAY!

Well, I hope my next chapter will be better.

Thanks for reading this crap!

Kitty


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